Can I clean my brass for too long?

Suther

Suther

CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Rating - 100%
27   0   0
Location
Fraser Valley
Okay so I dont have a tumbler or anything yet. I decided to clean my brass with a recipe found online.

1 part vinegar to 4 parts water, with a dash of dish soap and a pinch of salt.
Mix well, add brass, soak for an hour, agitating occasionally. Rinse well, and dry.

The first time I did this, the brass was in the wash for around an hour. Then I tossed 'em in an old pillowcase, and threw them into the dryer for a bit. This was pretty loud so after like 20 minutes I pulled them out, and laid them on some paper towel. It came out looking good, no complaints.

So I did it again last night. Except this time I got distracted and forgot about it. This morning I rinsed it off and I left it out in the sun to dry.

My question is will this harm the brass at all? I know some people tumble for 4+ hours, so would 12-14 hours soaking in a bath hurt anything? The brass looks different this time...I was thinking that could be because it was left to air dry, rather than tumbled in a dryer? I dunno... I just need to make sure Im not going to blow my face off reloading this stuff because I f***ed it up or something....

My other question is about the salt. Salt is usually a bad thing for metals, is brass any different? It seemed odd to me that you would add salt to the mix, so I didn't do it the first time. I did try it this second time to see if anything was different, but because I left it overnight I can't say what if any difference the salt may have had.
 
trebor2880 said:
Do you know how inexpensive a tumbler is?:) This sure seems like alot of time and energy spent.
Click to expand...

Do you know how much more inexpensive vinegar and dish soap is? lol

But seriously, I plan to get a tumbler, but I dont even have dies or a press yet, as funds are very limited. The nice part about brass is my friends love to go shooting, so they can pay for ammo for my guns (Im not paying for their ammo, thats crazy talk...) and I'll just collect the brass they shoot. I figure it doesn't really take much effort to wash 'em by hand, just some time and some patience. And as I stated, I really liked the results of the first attempt.

Long story short, telling me to get a tumbler is a waste of both of our time. This brass has already been cleaned without one, and Im trying to figure out if I've buggered the brass or not. Telling me to get a tumbler doesn't help my quandary one bit.

Does anyone know if 12-14 hours of soaking in soapy water will hurt brass or not?
And does anyone know about the effects of salt on brass? Either as an effective additive for cleaning, detrimental to the brass, or just snake oil?

Thanks!
 
the amount of energy you use with a dryer will pay for a basic tumbler in no time.

that said, you can leech out the zinc causing the brass to turn pinkish, doing that a few times is fine, but you will weaken the brass if you keep doing it that way. how many times, i don't know if that's ever been tested. you would need to test the same batch of brass with the same loads, etc to see how it much it would effect it.

if hot soapy (not vinegary) water cleans it enough for your liking, stick with that, no harm.

unless your brass is really grungy, you don't HAVE to clean it.
 
I don't have a tumbler and haven't cleaned any brass in 40+ years of reloading. Yes if it is coated with dirt and grit i may wash it but shiney brass will not shoot any tighter groups. I have tried some cleaners i read about but didn't spend a lot of time at it. I use a primer pocket cleaner most time on target ammo but hunting ammo doesn't get a lot of extra time spent on it.
 
Suther said:
Long story short, telling me to get a tumbler is a waste of both of our time. This brass has already been cleaned without one, and Im trying to figure out if I've buggered the brass or not. Telling me to get a tumbler doesn't help my quandary one bit.
Thanks!
Click to expand...


Don't tell me to get a tumbler...I've already done that. I'm just not sure if It worked or not......

You have so much to learn...and I am usually so patient with new shooters....but you need to read a little first and let it soak in. Telling you to ge a tumbler first is not a waste of anyone's time...well maybe ours. People are trying to help. Don't be an a$$ !!

How many threads have your read about guys soaking their brass for 12-14 hours???
20 minutes in a dryer and you question if air drying might be the problem........seriously?
read through the threads in this section.
It is not rocket science...FFS!!!
 
Last edited:
Brass can contain zinc and salt in water can result in dezincification by electrolysis. I am guessing but it would seem to be a longer term thing?

Best bet is to contact the people who make the brass for cartridges and talk to a metallurgist. We here will try to help but unless one is n the field of speciality they are not an expert?
 
Wired leader said:
Don't tell me to get a tumbler...I've already done that. I'm just not sure if It worked or not......

You have so much to learn...and I am usually so patient with new shooters....but you need to read a little first and let it soak in. Telling you to ge a tumbler first is not a waste of anyone's time...well maybe ours. People are trying to help. Don't be an a$$ !!

How many threads have your read about guys soaking their brass for 12-14 hours???
20 minutes in a dryer and you question if air drying might be the problem........seriously?
read through the threads in this section.
It is not rocket science...FFS!!!
Click to expand...

I specifically stated I plan to get a tumbler down the road, but I am making due with what is available now.

My question was if anyone knows if what I did could be dangerous/harmful/whatever. I had already cleaned the brass, so telling me to get a tumbler doesn't do anything with the brass I already cleaned. As I already stated, I was quite happy with the results the first time around.

As for air drying, its a perfectly reasonable question. tumbling in the hot dryer could buff out any water spots or soap marks or whatever on the brass, that I would be seeing on this new batch. I dont really know, thats why I am asking if anyone has an explanation.

For the record, I have done quite a lot of reading on the subject, and am well aware of the whole gambit - from people who never clean, to people who can't use anything but the most pristine, perfect brass and thus wet tumble for 4+ hours while changing their wash after an hour or two. I dont need perfect brass, what I do need is safe brass. I have not come across this particular topic (that is, longer than 4 or 5 hours in water) that is why I asked.
 
You need a lot of patience when it comes to reloading
Rushing anything and not using proper tools and instruments
Will cause you harm. No steps should be missed
K
 
Get a tumbler.

Been there, done a lot of first hand testing etc., --> get a tumbler. And a cheap timer you can plug it into.
 
Suther said:
I specifically stated I plan to get a tumbler down the road, but I am making due with what is available now.

My question was if anyone knows if what I did could be dangerous/harmful/whatever. I had already cleaned the brass, so telling me to get a tumbler doesn't do anything with the brass I already cleaned. As I already stated, I was quite happy with the results the first time around.

As for air drying, its a perfectly reasonable question. tumbling in the hot dryer could buff out any water spots or soap marks or whatever on the brass, that I would be seeing on this new batch. I dont really know, thats why I am asking if anyone has an explanation. I pop my brass in a towel from the tumbler role it around a bit and then into our Kitchen oven on a pizza pan heated to 200 F for 20-30 minutes remove and let cool.

For the record, I have done quite a lot of reading on the subject, and am well aware of the whole gambit - from people who never clean, to people who can't use anything but the most pristine, perfect brass and thus wet tumble for 4+ hours while changing their wash after an hour or two. I dont need perfect brass, what I do need is safe brass. I have not come across this particular topic (that is, longer than 4 or 5 hours in water) that is why I asked.
Click to expand...

Wet tumbling goes from 2 to 4 hours only depending how dirty the brass is and I NEVER change the water in between no need. 1/4 tsp of lemishine and 1 -2 TBSP of dish liquid works well in a 5 lb tumbler, again depending on the condition of your brass. It's important to rinse really well the shells and the tumbler to get rid of residue and lemishine or the cases will discolor over time.
 
Doing it once or twice is probably not an issue. Drying it at low temperature will not harm brass. But doing it over and over is probably not a good idea and using too high a temperature is a really bad idea.

One reason to clean brass is that it makes it much easier to properly inspect it for cracks. That's a real-world advantage, far more so that mere 'prettifying'.

Before I got my tumbler, I used to clean brass by depriming it, putting it into a sleeve taken from an old flannel shirt, soaking the sleeve with lighter fluid and shaking hard for a few minutes before dumping the brass out on a flat surface to air dry (a few minutes), Worked as well as the washing machine and the Boss didn't get upset about her appliances. Made them clean, but not necessarily shiny. Tumbler works better, of course.
 
The other reason to clean brass thoroughly is to remove all traces of sizing lube or any other lubricant. These can reduce the hold that the brass has on the chamber and significantly increase the thrust on the bolt face. If you're lucky all you'll do is end up with a headspace problem. If you're not lucky ...........
 
scout_289 said:
Brass can contain zinc and salt in water can result in dezincification by electrolysis. I am guessing but it would seem to be a longer term thing?

Best bet is to contact the people who make the brass for cartridges and talk to a metallurgist. We here will try to help but unless one is n the field of speciality they are not an expert?
Click to expand...

Acid will leech zinc from the brass which leave the brass with a pinkish hue or even pink blotches in extreme cases. This is often seen with people who are new to wet tumbling and use too much lemi-
shine. Vinegar is also acidic though to a lesser degree, but if soaked in it long enough, I'm sure it would also lead to some leeching.
In most cases the brass is still fine to use and can be removed by either tumbling wet again with no lemi-shine or in a vibratory tumbler with a dry media.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom